Tips for Choosing the Best Preschool for Your Child

Posted on
November 27, 2018 by
Early Innings

Over the years, awareness of the importance of early education has led to the development of preschools to an enormous level all over the globe. Starting a preschool is the chief milestone in a child’s life and every parent desires to place their child in a preschool which gives the best opportunity for learning and development in a healthy environment for positive outcome. However, deciding on a preschool has been a challenging task and it is one of the main concerns of many parents who are unaware of the criteria’s needed for a good preschool.

What is the big deal?

90% of the human brain develops during the first 5 years of a child’s life. Thus, preschools use this crucial period to prepare the child to think, learn, communicate, explore and understand their capability and self-worth which enriches them to tackle new challenges in their lives. The momentous period of childhood is enhanced by early childhood education that lays a strong foundation for a child growing up in our culture.

What should you look for Best Preschool?

A good preschool should provide a safe and secured environment with good resources, highly qualified professionals and a developmentally appropriate curriculum along with home-school partnership to enhance the holistic development of the child.

ENVIRONMENT: The preschool environment should be big and spacious enough for conducting activities with good amount of assets that fosters child’s learning and development. It has to be child-friendly to keep them safe from any harm and protect their well-being. The preschool environment should have areas such as a toy room, math lab, sand area, sensorial area, jungle gym, A.V room and area for science experiment etc. It must also give children equal opportunities to promote social interaction and train them to be independent to explore and gain confidence. Thus a healthy environment will make children feel comfortable and develop their physical, cognitive, language, social and emotional skills. Moreover, it will also encourage them to be creative and expressive.

DEVELOPMENTALLY APPROPRIATE CURRICULUM: A good preschool should pursue developmentally appropriate preschool curriculum which makes use of the play- way method of teaching that enhances a child’s overall development. A developmentally appropriate curriculum is the one that takes into account the current abilities of the child and provides experiences that enhance and challenge their skills with minimum risk of failure. It must offer equal opportunity for learning irrespective of gender, age, ethnicity or cultural background, assist children to develop their self-esteem; self-identity and teach them to accept diversity. The preschool curriculum program should focus on the home-school partnership where the families from diverse culture feel welcomed and valued. A well-planned age-appropriate curriculum will facilitate children to be merrily engaged and focused in learning as well as create self-discipline in them.

QUALIFIED PROFESSIONALS: Children spend maximum time at home with their mothers and at school with their teachers. They see teachers as their role models and replicate their behavior. Thus, a teacher has to be trained and qualified, passionate, unbiased, observant, calm, kind and caring in nature. She should be skilled in classroom management, use positive disciplinary techniques and maintain positive interaction with children and adults.

However, it is seen that many early childhood education centers are found with poor quality curriculum having less assets, few and under qualified teachers, unhealthy and insecure environment and absence of home-school partnership that not only degrades the education system but affects the foundation on which a child develops. Therefore, scrutinizing quality assurance and evaluating the early childhood program is very crucial in selecting a preschool.